NXT Viewership Struggles in last show before WWE's rebranding

By Nick Lombardi
Modified Sep 10, 2021 01:27 IST
NXT's ratings fall dramatically from the week prior. Even with the in-ring debut of Mei Ying
NXT's ratings fall dramatically from the week prior. Even with the in-ring debut of Mei Ying

NXT, once one of WWE's hottest brands, has been struggling as of late. While NXT has struggled to compete with AEW overall since Dynamite premiered in 2019, the brand's numbers this past week are some of the worst.

As reported by Fightful, NXT only drew 601,000 viewers for the September 7th episode. That number is significantly down from last week's viewership number of 717,000 viewers.

"The show scored a 0.14 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic, down from last week's 0.17 rating in the same demographic. The show finished 31st among cable originals. The night on cable was won by Hannity on Fox News, which scored 3.085 million viewers and a 0.26 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic," read the report. (h/t Fightful)

This week's episode featured the in-ring debut of Mei Ying, the leader of Tian Sha. Along with Kay Lee Ray taking on Ember Moon, and NXT Women's and Men's Championship matches.

This edition of NXT also marks the final production of the show with its current branding. As confirmed by WWE last month, the NXT brand will be receiving a full revamp.

Everything from the color, ring and stage orientation and general feel of NXT will be changing. This "new" brand of NXT will be coming live to the NXT Universe on September 14th.

What will the "New" NXT Look Like?

Last week, WWE provided a small hint at some of the changes coming to NXT in a tweet by NXT's official account:

As noted earlier, this "new" version of NXT will "Look and Feel" different than its predecessor. It is also being reported that WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and loyal producer Bruce Prichard will jointly produce the show, rather than Triple H.